I would like to hear a knowledgeable persons view on the harvesting and drying process.

Once they begin to pin, how long should I wait before plucking them?
How large should they be?
Should I experiment with different stages of development?


Is cooking them in an oven at 90*F a good idea?
If so, how long?

Pick them right before the veil separates. Fan dry them for ~8-12 hours then stick them in a deccicant chamber overnight. I wouldn't use heat at all. And for the luls....size doesn't matter

You can let the veils break on some if it means giving a little time to let others catch up. I remember harvesting about this time, when a few had broken veils and the rest were ready to break.

Also heat isn't always bad. Most people would advise against using an oven, but many agree that if done right it can work out. I still wouldn't advise it though. The best route to go is a variable temperature food dehydrator. From what I've read going over 100f is bad but practical tests seem to prove otherwise [one link (http://www.shroomery.org/forums/showflat.php/Number/7143885#7143885)].

All I have right now is a set of dehydrator trays [no fan/heater] so I'm going to rig a heat gun to it and drop it to 50c [122f, the lowest I've found]. I plan on doing a test with a dessicant as well just to see for myself, but I'm confident it will work out.

You can let the veils break on some if it means giving a little time to let others catch up. I remember harvesting about this time, when a few had broken veils and the rest were ready to break.

Also heat isn't always bad. Most people would advise against using an oven, but many agree that if done right it can work out. I still wouldn't advise it though. The best route to go is a variable temperature food dehydrator. From what I've read going over 100f is bad but practical tests seem to prove otherwise [one link (http://www.shroomery.org/forums/showflat.php/Number/7143885#7143885)].

All I have right now is a set of dehydrator trays [no fan/heater] so I'm going to rig a heat gun to it and drop it to 50c [122f, the lowest I've found]. I plan on doing a test with a dessicant as well just to see for myself, but I'm confident it will work out.

Well of course you can wait a little for the rest to catch up, but if you wait a little too long, you always have a few overly mature bastards making a purple mess all over your fruiting chamber. I would MUCH rather pick a little early than too late and have to deal with that mess. But if you guys ever grow the penis envy strain, let them mature an additional 1-3 days after the veil breaks away. They dont drop many spores anyway, and they grow quite a bit in that time.

I keep samples of all my harvests in long term storage, so any degradation of potency means alot to me, so my shrooms never experience any temperature higher than in the incubation chamber.

I tried silica once, it didn't get the mushrooms cracker dry. Not saying it doesn't work, just my experience.

Damprid FTW brotha

dude it depends on what you're picking. you should really do some research instead of asking for answers. i just dry them under my desk lamp for a couple of hours

Damprid FTW brotha

That seems like a good idea.

dude it depends on what you're picking.

God seekers, anyone know anything about that?

you should really do some research instead of asking for answers.
I did, and found many answers. now I have more.

i just dry them under my desk lamp for a couple of hoursThat doesn't seem like a very good method to me, I want to be able to store them for awhile, So I want to get as much of the moisture out as possible.

That doesn't seem like a very good method to me, I want to be able to store them for awhile, So I want to get as much of the moisture out as possible.

they turn into crackers. i only pick 1-4 at a time, my patches are weak right now due to a lack of rain. my lamp gets pretty hot and they aren't all that thick.